Being a Sci-Fi Romance lover like I am, I was salivating for the opportunity to read a sampling of so many 'new to me' authors in the genre. Usually with a short story anthology it is a bit hit or miss and I was prepared for this contingency, but holy guacamole!!! They were all big hits with me and I will most assuredly be hunting down more of these author's efforts.
As I started reading, I encountered the forward letter explaining the way this anthology came about. It's a nice little story of its own. A few authors of similar genre came together and that built to a huge network of them who now call themselves the Science Fiction Romance (SFR) Brigade. And some of these folk in turn have turned their talents toward this sampler.
Another cool thing about the book is that after each story concludes there is a short piece about what inspired the story. I have a nosy nature and like to know stuff like that so I found the little extra bit along with the author's bio appealing.
Okay, now that I've danced around the stories for a little while, let's get to it. There are eight stories that range in length from short shorts to a shorter novella. I do not plan to do full reviews on each story, but I'll give a few thoughts. Each story is a different facet to Sci-Fi Romance and it was fun getting something different with each tale.
The first story, Imprint, is about a female thief and the Space Marshall who tracks her and brings her to justice. It was a nice romp that pitted the hero and heroine against each other in an enemies to lovers romance.
Second story, Allure, is a military romance where a young couple has only one night before the man jumps on his rocket shuttle and heads off to war. This is one of the shortest stories that doesn't have much development time, yet is still rather engaging.
Then Nobody's Present was an alien romance where a female scientist gets all her dreams of space travel and using her skills come true in a unique way. I was a bit confused about the alien backstory, but still enjoyed the main plot just fine.
The other really short story was The Stranger. I really wished this one could have had more time to develop. It felt like I was jumping into the story right at the tale end. It was a really poignant piece for all that in that a female resistance fighting captain searches out the last remaining bonded humans who were separated in the war to get them off planet to a free planet where hopefully they can find their bondmate. She has never stopped looking for her long lost bond mate.
Mission Nam Selon is a part of a series and was more novella length. I had no trouble reading this one as a standalone, but I really liked the characters and am dying to know their backstory in the full-length novel that introduced the series. It's an ongoing romance between a Captain in a freedom fighting group and a cyborg who defected from the Triad group who are trying to conquer everyone. They have to part for separate missions and there is worry over potential danger that does indeed come to fruition.
Prime Sensations was a second chance romance when a captured woman who was made a slave suddenly comes face to face with the lover who left her behind to the enemy three years before. All was not what it seemed and now they can start over if she can learn to trust again.
Envy's Revenge was a unique piece told in first person of a girl who is a survivor. The planet was ravaged by a horrible disease that took mostly the women and then it all degenerated into war and isolated city states vying for power. Life is hard and brutal and she just wants to remain free. Things change when a a mech hunter comes for her.
The final entry was a western that could have been set in space, parallel earth or a future earth. Not sure, but its got the saloon, the gamblers, dance hall girls, bartender, gunslingers and the show down to prove it.
So all in all, this was one of my best experiences with an anthology and I loved experiencing each unique piece that ranged in heat from sweet to spicy when it came to the romance. Sci-Fi Romance lovers should definitely pick this one up.
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- chris3158Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 25, 2017
Two good but the rest were mildly entertaining
